An in-depth look at one album. Part of the Spotlight series run by Group Therapy.
If Magical Mystery Tour was the double EP set that should have been (and soon was) an album, then Yellow Submarine, the Beatles’ eleventh record, was the album that should have been an EP. With only four new songs and … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Yellow Submarine
Many Beatles albums exist outside of the context of the events that were happening in real life at the time of the work’s recording. Magical Mystery Tour, the group’s ninth album, is not one of those records. In order … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Magical Mystery Tour
The Beatles’ eighth album, released June 1st, 1967, is their most famous and had the greatest musical impact of any of their records. In the famed Summer of Love of that year, everyone—EVERYONE—was listening to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
Revolver, the Beatles’ seventh album, is their greatest overall achievement and the dividing line between their Early and Late periods of work. (You could also say it’s the peak of their Middle period if you wanted to divide their career … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Revolver
If the Beatles had disbanded prior to the release of Rubber Soul, their sixth album, they would be remembered, if at all, as a talented pop group of the early Sixties with a tremendous amount of songwriting talent and innovation. … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Rubber Soul
Help! was rather a struggle for me to find a way into reviewing it. While trying to get a handle on what I wanted to say, I asked my twenty something son what he thought of it. “That’s my favorite … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Help!
There’s no denying that Beatles For Sale, the band’s fourth album, is a bit of a comedown from the first three. The exuberance of the earlier records is muted, and the overall tone is sadder and a bit cynical. In … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles — Beatles For Sale
Britney Spears 5th Album is classic pop. It’s as far from an auteur piece as possible, it had so many producers that it’s credit list would be the same length as a Hollywood blockbuster. It was the music industry at … Continue reading Album Spotlight – Britney Spears : Blackout
With their third album, A Hard Day’s Night, the Beatles met the challenge of providing a film soundtrack for the first time, and despite the time they were putting in making the movie, the result is one of their finest. … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—A Hard Day’s Night
One could be forgiven for expecting that the Beatles’ second record wouldn’t be as groundbreaking as their first. But the group avoided the dreaded sophomore slump with their album With the Beatles, released November 23, 1963. Coming off of two more … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—With The Beatles
It was fifty-five years prior to this date of publication that the main recording session for the Beatles’ first album, Please Please Me, took place. As Mark Lewisohn, the Beatles’ foremost biographer, later wrote, there have scarcely been 585 more … Continue reading Album Spotlight: The Beatles—Please Please Me
Nothing from Donuts will ever be performed at a concert. Time is the donut of the heart. The track “Lightworks” samples electronic pioneer Raymond Scott, who composed music for Looney Tunes and built some of the earliest synthesizers. His most … Continue reading Album Spotlight: J Dilla – Donuts
